Flyers

Flyers and Sixers “Laser-Focused” on Spring 2030 Date for New South Philly Arena

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Oct 23rd, 2025 · 11:42 AM EDT

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Thursday morning, the Flyers and Sixers were out at Scanlon Ice Rink and Playground in Kensington to announce that Bank of America will be the official bank partner of both teams, and Xfinity Mobile Arena. That includes B of A donating up to $250,000 of hockey equipment to schools in the Greater Philadelphia region throughout the duration of the partnership.

After the festivities, we caught up with Comcast-Spectacor Chairman and CEO Dan Hilferty, and HBSE Chief Executive Officer Tad Brown to get the latest on the new arena effort at the sports complex:

Hilferty:

“The only thing I’ll say is that our priority is the new arena. That’s what we’re focused on. We’re laser-focused on that 2030 date and we’re excited, not just about what we’re going to do in the interim with Xfinity Mobile Arena, but we’re gonna build the best arena in the world.”

Brown:

“We’re gonna build the best arena in the world. We’ve gone on a number of different trips to see the newest arenas in the country. We’ve traveled all over the world the last couple of years and we’re going to bring the finest arena in the world to South Philly for our fans and for this community. We’re focused, like Dan said, we’re looking at that 2030 date. We’re checking all of the boxes right now. We’ve got our teams aligned and we’re building the infrastructure and we’re going to be out there with the opening of the WNBA team in that 2030 time frame, in the spring of 2030, and we’re gonna go through everything we possibly can, as quickly as we possibly can, with all the constituents that we need to, to make sure we stay aligned on that timeline and get it going. There’s so much opportunity here that we want to take advantage of. Our ownership team – Josh Harris, David Blitzer, David Adelman, Brian Roberts, they look at this as a legacy opportunity for the city and region. It’s on us, the people working on this on a daily basis, to make that come to life. We’re in the middle of that right now.

Originally, when the Sixers were planning to leave South Philly for Market Street, 2031 was the expiration date for their lease at Wells Fargo Center. When 76 Place was scrapped, and the teams decided to partner up after two years of ripping each other, it rendered all of that moot, since Comcast-Spectacor owned the building and could build a new one at any future date.

So 2030 makes sense. That’s the WNBA team’s expansion season, playing a schedule that begins in May. They would play their inaugural season inside the new building and possibly open the venue.

For the Flyers and Sixers, it would mean four more full seasons at THE X. They would finish 2025-2026, then play:

• 2026-2027
• 2027-2028
• 2028-2029
• 2029-2030

Unless one or both teams goes on a deep playoff run, their seasons would be over just before the WNBA team starts in the spring of 2030.

As for the Phillies and Eagles, conversations continue there. The Phillies are taking part in the larger sports complex revamp with the Flyers and Sixers. Nothing has necessarily changed with the Eagles, whose lease at Lincoln Financial Field expires in 2032. They have different needs and priorities than the other teams, for instance – parking and tailgating.